Multi-shuttle weft replenishing loom



Aug. 5, 1958 c. DARWIN MULTI-SHUTTLE WEFT REPLENISHING LOOM 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 21, 1956 f M fill/2% 3 60 CF Q w 3 1w 44' hl" 47 H 0 ms wi W1. 28 O 2 '7 -27 s t: 1 o 'W M H h 48 ML m. W WM I I7 I W 1 m 5 \1 l2 4 WW to m i 0 u 5 9 20 p Wm. 2 f 2x INVENTOR CLIFFORD DARWIN ATTORNEY Aug. 5, 1958 c. DARWIN 2,845,956

MULTI-SHUTTLE WEFT REPLENISHING LOOM Filed Sept. 21, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 l NVENTOR CLIFFORD DARWIN MT. W1

ATTORNEY United States Patent MULTI-SHUTTLE WEFT REPLENISHING LOOM Clifford Darwin, Paxton, Mass., assignor to Crompton & Knowles Corporation, Worcester, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Application September 21, 1956, Serial No. 611,232

16 Claims. (Cl. 139-232) This invention relates to improvementsin multi-color weft replenishing looms of the type employing rotary reserve bobbin magazines and it is the general object of the invention to provide for a reduced amount of angular motion of the magazine immediately before a weft replenishing operation is to occur.

.Ina recently developed loom of this general type the magazine remains at rest after a replenishing operation and .iflthe next replenishing operation involves the same color as that of the previous operation the magazine must be rocked through a space equal to the angular width of a group. Thus, if four colors are being woven in the weft conditions can exist which require an angular motion of the magazine equal to a 4-b0bbir1 space around the magazine. This requires considerable time in the loom cycle and limits the speed at which the loom can be operated.

It is an important object of the present invention to provide a loom of the type referred to wherein the angular motion of the magazine just prior to a replenishing operation will always be less than the angular space occupied by a group of bobbins in the magazine. This reduces the angular motion which can occur at any one time and permits better and faster operation of the loom. This result is accomplished by moving the magazine in two steps, the first of which occurs immediately after a replenishment operation and places the next bobbin of the group in transferring position. The second stage occurs immediately before a replenishing operation and rocks the magazine to place in transfer position a bobbin corresponding to the depleted shuttle. If four diiferent colors are being woven in the weft so that there will be four bobbins in a group in the magazine the first bobbin of the group will be in transfer position and not require any movement of the magazine for replenishment of the shuttle corresponding to that bobbin. If replenishment is required of the shuttle corresponding to the last bobbin in the group then the angular distance through which the magazine will be moved will correspond to three bobbin spaces in the magazine so that the maximum angular motion which can be required of the magazine will be that corresponding to three bobbins, or the angular distance corresponding to a full group less the angular distance corresponding to one bobbin.

The first of the aforesaid motions, that is, the motion occurring immediately after a replenishing operation, can be made without getting the magazine out of step with the various shuttles to be replenished because of the fact that a set of ratchet wheels moving with the maga zinc and cooperating one at a time with an actuating paw1.will turn with the magazine when it is given its one-space shift. Under these conditions the actuating pawl, the position of which is determined by which shuttle is active, will be able to engage the ratchet wheel corresponding to the shuttle to be depleted and move it the correct amount to place the corresponding bobbin in the group intransfer position.

If bobbins are transferred from the magazine it is" attendant and it is a further object of the invention to provide means by which a magazine can be turned angularly one bobbin space at a time by the attendant to facilitate application of fresh bobbins to the magazine. It is another object of the invention to provide manually controlled means by which the magazine can be shifted one bobbin space at a time to permit insertion of fresh bobbins in blank spaces in the magazine.

It is a further object of the invention to employ a single actuating means to turn the magazine through a one-bobbin space and have this single means controlled either automatically by the loom after a replenishing operation or manually by the bobbin attendant when placing fresh bobbins in the magazine. The automatic onebobbin space shift of the magazine is controlled from some part which has a motion incident to a replenishing operation, such as the means which sets the latch of the transfer mechanism in position for engagement by the hunter on the lay. The time in the loom cycle during which the one bobbin space shift controlled by the loom occurs is late enough so that operation by the manual control cannot interfere with the automatic shift: ing of the magazine.

It is a more specific object of the invention to secure an advancing ratchet wheel tothe shaft which carries the aforesaid color selector ratchet wheels and actuate said ratchet by an electro-magnetioally controlled pawl which is operatively connected to a regularly moving member regularly inactive with respect to the pawl but connected to it to effect the one-space shift of the magazine either automatically or by manual control.

In order that the invention may be clearly understood reference is made to the accompanying drawings which illustrate by way of example the embodiments of the invention and in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a loom having the invention applied thereto, I

Fig. 2 is an enlarged rear elevation looking in the direction of arrow 2, Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a vertical section on line 33, Fig. 2,

Fig. 4 is a horizontal section on line 44, Fig. 3,

Fig. 5 is a detailed section on line 55, Fig. 3, on an enlarged scale, and

Fig. 6 is a diagrammatic view similar to a part of Fig. 3 but showing the parts in position to effect the one space shift of the magazine.

Referring more particularly to Figs. 1 and 2, the loom has right and left loomsides 1 and 2 between which extend top and bottom shafts 3 and 4. The top shaft rotates once for each beat of the loom and is connected in usual manner to the lay 5 to reciprocate the latter backwardly and forwardly through bottom, front, top and back center positions once for each beat of the loom. In Fig. 1 the lay is shown in its front center position, the position it occupies when a bobbin is transferred into a depleted shuttle in shuttle box 6.

Secured to the bottom shaft is a grooved cam 7 receiving a roll 8 on the rear arm 9 of a lever 10 the forward end of which has pivoted to it a lifting dog 11.

The dog rises every second heat of the loom due to rotation of the cam 7 but ordinarily misses a lug 12 on the front arm 13 of a lifter lever 14. Mounted on lever 14 is a selector mechanism designated generally at 15 including a number of selector fingers 16 which in the present instance are four in number to correspond to the four shuttles with which the loom operates. A solenoid 17 normally deenergized is under control of the weft detector or feeler F and when the feeler indicates weft exhaustion in a shuttle in box 6 the solenoid is Patented Aug. 5, 1 s

3 energized to lift whichever of the fingers 16 is registered with the solenoid.

Registry of the mechanism is effected from the opposite end of the loom through a connector 20 attached to a lever 21 pivoted on the lower end of a stand 22 and attached to a link '23 extending re-arwardly, to the right in Fig. 1, for attachment to a selector lever 24. A second rod 25 extends from the selector lever to the mechanism 15 to slide the fingers 16 as a group for each change in the active shuttle. Each finger 16 is capable when registering with the: latch 11 of moving the latter'under the lug 12 so that as the forward arm 10 of lever 9 rises it will lift a setting rod 26 the effect of which is to raise the transfer latch 27 from the position shown in Fig. 1 into alignment with a hunter 23 on the lay.

The latch 27 is connected to the transferer arm 29 which will be depressed to move a bobbin from a magazine M into the shuttle in box 6 as the lay moves to its front center position. If a shuttle in box 6 is depleted and has caused the solenoid 17 to rock the corresponding finger 16 and then is picked to the opposite side of the loom and moves out of action there will be a shifting of the set of fingers so that the finger rocked into indicating position will be out of register with the latch 11. When the depleted shuttle again returns to action there will be a corresponding shift of lever 24 and its finger previously rocked will then register with latch 11 to cause lifting of the front arm 13 of the lever 14 to set the magazine for a transferring operation by lifting latch 27.

The bobbin magazine M is of the rotary type and holds groups of bobbins, each group in the present instance containing four diverse bobbins, one bobbin for each shuttle.' The bobbins are arranged around the axis of the magazine and all of the bobbins are capable of being moved to a transfer position under the transferer arm and over the box 6 when the lay is on front center position.

The magazine is turned by means of a chain 30 which is trained around a sprocket wheel 31 fixed with respect to the magazine. The rear part of the chain 11 is trained around a larger sprocket wheel 32 which is fixed with respect to a shaft 33 rotatable in a fixed stand 34. Secured to the shaft is a nest or group of selector ratchet wheels, four in number as shown herein, and designated at 35, 36, 37 and 38. The ratchet wheels have their teeth staggered as suggested in Fig. 2, the staggering of the teeth of adjacent ratchets being equal and in an amount equal to A of the length of a tooth on any of the ratchets. The teeth of the ratchet wheels are indicated at 39 and while they turn with the shaft 33 and therefore with the magazine their positions are fixed with respect to each other so that depending upon which of the ratchets is engaged the magazine can be rocked a greater or lesser amount.

A pawl mechanism for rocking the ratchets is designated generally at 40 and includes a pawl 41 carried by a lever 42 mounted on a slide rod 43 the position of which is determined by a bell crank lever 44. This lever has an upper arm 45 entering a collar 46 fixed with respect to rod 43 and has its other lever 47 connected to a depending rod 48, the lower end of which is connected to an arm 49 of lever 24.

As lever 24 rocks due to a change in the active shuttle the pawl 41 will be given a corresponding lateral shift to register with one or another of the r-atchets 3538. This lateral shifting of the pawl 41 with respect to the ratchets takes place with each change in the active shuttle, but this shifting does not effect turning of the ratchets and therefore the magazine except at such time as the ratchet 24 is rocked.

When the lever 14 is rocked to set the magazine for a transfer its rear arm connected by a link 56 to a lever 5'7 causes the .latter to have a counterclockwise movement as viewed in Fig. 1 to exert a downward pull on rod 58. Downward pulling of this latter rod causes the pawl 41 to have an operative angular movement to the left, Fig. 1, to engage whichever of the ratchets 35-38 aligns with it to rock the magazine a corresponding amount. At the same time an arm 60 is moved to the right, Fig. l, to move a pawl mechanism generally indicated at 61 into temporary holding relation with stop mechanism generally indicated at 62.

The mechanism thus far described may be the same as that shown in prior Patent No. 2,754,853, to which reference may be had for more complete description of the structure and operation of the mechanism. It is believed sufiicient for present purposes to state that when the feeler F indicates weft exhaustion the finger 16 corresponding to the active shuttle will be moved into position so that it can deflect the latch 11 upon subsequent upward movement of ,arm 10 of the lever 9. This movement, however, does not occur until time has elapsed in the cycle of the loom for mechanism at the opposite end of the loom to determine whether the depleted shuttle isto return to the magazine end. When a depleted shuttle returns to box 6 the magazine is set for transfer and the pawl 41 is rocked to engagethe ratchet 35, 36, 37 or 38 which corresponds to the depleted shuttle. The magazine will then be rocked to place a bobbin of a color corresponding to the depleted shuttle under the transferer arm and as the lay moves to front center position this bobbin will be transferred into the shuttle. If the depleted shuttle upon returning to the opposite side of the loom is moved out of action then then rocking of the magazine and the setting of a transfer latch will be delayed until the shuttle is to return into action.

The magazine thus far described upon transfer of a bobbin remains in the position it occupied at the time of transfer so that there will be a blank space in the magazine under the transferer arm and if the next replenishing operation requires a bobbin of the same color as the bobbin involved in the previous transfer then the magazine will be rocked an angular distance equal to that occupied by the four bobbins of a group. It is to be understood, of course, that the magazine can be rocked lesser distances but as set forth in the previously mentioned patent it must always be rocked an angular distance equal to at least one bobbin space before a bobbin will be in transfer position.

The present invention relates more particularly to means for effecting a one bobbin space shift of the magazine immediately after a bobbin transfer operation so that the next bobbin of a group will be moved to transfer position under the transfer arm. In order to effect this result the shaft 33 has secured thereto an advancing ratchet wheel 70 which may conveniently have as many teeth as there are bobbin spaces in the magazine. Whenever this ratchet is moved in a counterclockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 3 for a distance of one tooth the magazine will be rocked a space equal to a one bobbin space. The mechanism for effecting this advance of ratchet 70 includes cam means, a lever actuated by the cam means, and aconnector between the lever and an actuating pawl for ratchet 70, together with control means called into action incident to a weft replenishing mechanism to cause the lever to rock the ratchet wheel 70.

Referring particularly to Fig. 3 a driving pawl 71 for the advancing ratchet wheel 70 is mounted on a lever 72 which rocks freely about the shaft 33. This lever has a cap 73 held in place by screws 74 and is positioned along the shaft 33 by collars 75 fixed to the shaft. Ex tending through the lever 72 is the stem 76 of a swivel 77 through which extends the upper end of a rod 78. A spring 79 surrounds the upper end of rod 78 between nuts 80 and the swivel 7,7 and has the effect ofpushing rod 78 downwardly as viewed in Fig. 3 to hold nut 81 on the rod against the upper part of the swivel.

The lower end of rod 78 is attached to a forked rod head 82 through which extends a stud 83 surrounded preferably, though not necessarily, by a roller 84. This roller is in a slot 85 in an arm 86 secured to a shaft 87. The slot is formed with a long side 88 and a short side 89, the lever having a hook part 90 between these two parts of the slot for the purpose of holding the roller.

Secured to the shaft 87 is another arm 91 the lower end of which as viewed in Fig. 1 has pivoted to it shoe 92 received by two paths or track grooves formed in a switch cam means designated generally at 93. The inner track 94 provides a dwell while the outertrack 95 is partly dwell and partly inclined, the inclined part being shown at 96. As the top shaft 3 turns the shoe 92 will enter first one and then the other of the paths 94 and 95 so that two rotations on the top shaft of the loom are required to give the lever arm 92 its complete motion.

A fixed solenoid 100 is provided with a connector 101 through which the lower part of rod 78 passes. A spring 102 connected to the rod 78 and to a clip 103 secured to arm 86 normally holds the stud 83 in the long part 8 8 of the slot in arm 86 so long as the solenoid is deenergized. When the solenoid is energized, however, it overpowers the spring 102 and shifts the rod head 82 from the position shown in Fig. 3 to that shown in Fig. 6 and subsequent upward movement of arm or member 86 will then lift rod 78 and act through spring 79 to rock the lever 72 and cause the pawl 71 to move the advancing ratchet wheel and cause the magazine to rock angularly a distance equal to a one bobbin space to place the next bobbin in the group in transfer position. Therefore the maximum angular motion which the magazine can move preparatory to the next replenishing'ope'ration will be through a space equal to three bobbins or one space less than the angular space occupied by the full bobbin group. I

The control for the solenoid 100 is derived from a switch 110 mounted in fixed position as shown at the lower part of Fig. 1 and having a plunger 111 normally depressed by arm 13. Whenever arm 13 rises to set the magazine for a transfer the switch 111 closes to energize the solenoid 100 and move the rod head to the position shown in Fig. 6.

The bobbin changing operation, including the setting of latch 27 for transfer and the rocking of the magazine will occupy a period of time beginning when the lay is approximately at bottom center on one beat of the loom and ending when the lay is between the second following front center and the next top center. During this period the pawl 71 should be inactive so as not to interfere with the replenishing operation, and it is for this reason that the dwell of the cam means 93 is provided. This dwell will be in control of the arm 86 during the aforesaid period, after which the incline Will rock arm 86 and complete its rocking before the beginning of a similar period beginning where the lay is on bottom center. If lever 13 should return to its low position to open switch 110 before rocking of the magazine can be completed by pawl 71 the part 90 of arm 86 will hold the stud 83 in position against the action of spring 102 to enable the pawl 71 to complete its rocking of the magazine.

The switch 110 can be connected electrically to the solenoid in any approved manner not illustrated.

The second part of the invention relates to means for rocking the magazine one bobbin space at a time to enable the bobbin attendant to place bobbins in blank spaces which may be left in the magazine by previous replenishing operations. The means for accomplishing this result is a normally open switch 120 which may be secured to the floor in front of the magazine and be connected by wire 121 to the solenoid 110. When the depresser 122 of the switch 120 is held down the solenoid will be energized and upon each upward movement of arm 86 the magazine will be given a one space shift occurring after the aforesaid periods. Even though switch should be closed at anytime in the loom cycle it cannot effect rocking of the magazine throughjthe advancingratchet 70 until after the time has passed when a replenishingoperation could occur and there is therefore no risk that a previously called replenishing opera tion can interfere with the step by step turning of the magazine by the bobbin attendant, or that the step by step movement of. the magazine can interfere with a weft replenishing operation.

With. further reference to the arrangement of the.

bobbins in groups in the magazine it may be stated that the bobbins will be arranged in the magazine in initial, groups with the bobbins in a given order in each group. After transfer of any bobbin from an initial group a new group will be formed beginning with the, bobbin in v transfer position and reading to the left, Fig. 1. The bobbins in this new group will not necessarily be in the. same order as were the bobbins in the initial group. The bobbins in the new group. willinclude the bobbin in transfer position, the bobbins of the initial group posi-v tioned so they could be moved to transfer position by the magazine which can turn in only one direction as indicated by arrow a in Fig. 1, and as many bobbins of the next initial group as'are required to provide the new group with as many bobbins as there were in the initial group. This rearrangement of the groups is similar to that described in the aforesaid patent to which reference may be had for a more complete description.

It should also be stated that lever 72 has an arm 125 for engagementwith the arm 60 when pawl 71 advances the magazine. The arm 60 serves the same purpose as a similar arm shown in the aforesaid patent and further description is not thought necessary.

Having now particularly described and ascertained th nature of the invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, what is claimed is: t

1. In a multi-shuttleweft replenishing loom provided with a rotary reserve bobbin magazine having initial groups of diverse bobbins, each group having a bobbin corresponding to each shuttle and the magazine being rockable in one direction to place any bobbin therein in transfer position, two -mechanisms to rock the magazine in said direction, one of said mechanisms effective to rock the magazine through a one-bobbin angular distance equivalent to the angular distance between adjacent bobbins immediately after a replenishing operation of the loom to place the next bobbin in the group in transfer position, and thereby constitute a new group including. said next bobbin and the remaining bobbins of the initial group movable to transfer position and enough bobbins of the next group so that the new group will have as many bobbins as the initial group, and the second mechanism effective immediately before the next replenishing operation to rock the magazine, if necessary, to place any of the bobbins in the new group other than said next bobbin in trans-fer position, the maximum angular motion of the magazine by the second mechanism always being less than the angular motion necessary to move any of the bobbins of a group through a space equal to the angular width of said group to transfer position due to the prioroperation of'the first mechanism.

2. The loom set forth in claim 1 wherein the first mechanism includes an advancing ratchet wheel operatively connected to the magazine, a pawl for the ratchet wheel, a member having regularly receiving working strokes normally idle relative to the pawl, and means controlled by the loom incident to a weft replenishing operation thereof to cause the member on the working stroke thereof immediately following a replenishing operation to operate the pawl to rock the magazine through said one-bobbin angular distance.

3. The loom set forth in claim 2 wherein the member 7 has .its working stroke every "second beat of the loom occurring after the lay of the loom hasreached'its front center position and a bobbin has been inserted into a depleted shuttle. I

4. The loom set forth in claim 2.wherein the pawl is controlled by electromagnetic means in circuit with a switch which is normally open but is closed incident to a weft replenishing operation of the loom.

5. The loom set forth in claim 2 wherein the member is actuated by a cam rotating each beat of the loom but having two paths and a shoe traversing first one and then the other of said paths which is effective when traversing one only of said paths to cause the member to have a working stroke. I

6. The loom set forth in claim 2 wherein the member is moved by a cam having dwell and inclined areas and the dwell area maintains the member inactive during that part of the loom cycle on-a replenishing operation in which the loom is set for and completes a replenishing operation and the incline area causes the working stroke of the member to occur after the replenishing operation is. completed.

7. In a multi-shuttle weft replenishing loom having a lay and provided with a rotary reserve bobbin magazine operating in such manner that the period of time required for a bobbin changing operation including rocking the magazine to place the correct bobbin in transfer position and setting the loom for a weft replenishing operation extends substantially from the time the lay is on a bottom center position on one beat of the loom until the lay is between its second front center position thereafter and the top center position next following, a member having a working stroke occurring between the end of said period and the beginning of a similar period of time beginning when the lay next reaches a bottom center position, advancing means for the magazine normally disconnected from said member but effective when operatively connected to the member to turn the magazine to facilitate insertion of fresh bobbins into the-magazine, and manually operable means to connect the member operatively to the advancing means, whereby advancing of the magazine can occur only between successive of said periods of time. i

8. The loom set forth in claim 7 wherein cam means is provided for actuation of said member and said cam means has a dwell area corresponding to said period and an inclined area to actuate the member upon completion of said period of time.

.9. The loom set forth in claim 7 wherein the member is a lever having connecting long and short slots therein and the advancing means includes a part movable from the long slot to the short slot by said manually operable means.

10. The loom set forth in claim 7 wherein there is provided a rotary cam requiring two successive one pick cycles of the loom for a rotation thereof and the cam has a dwell corresponding to said period of time and an incline to cause said member to have the working stroke thereof.

11. The loom set forthin claim 7 wherein the manually operable means includes a normally open electric switch and a solenoid energized when the switch is closed and the solenoid when energized operatively connects the member to the advancing means.

12. In a multi-shuttle weft replenishing loom having a lay and provided with a rotary reserve -bobbin maga- 8 zine operating in such manner that the period of time required for a. bobbin changing operation including rocking the magazine to place the correct bobbin'in transfer position and setting the loom for a weft replenishing operation extends substantially from the time the lay is on a bottom center position'on one heat of the loom until the lay is between its second front center position thereafter and the top center position next following, a member having a working stroke occurring between the end of said period and the beginning of a similar-period of time beginning when the lay next reaches a bottom center position, advancing means for the magazine normally disconnected from said member but effective when operatively connected to the member to turn the magazine, and two controls for the advancing means to connect the latter operatively to the member, one of said controls being operative incident to a weft replenishing operation of the loom and the other control being manually operated, the manual control being incapable of interfering with a weft replenishing operation and a weft. replenishing operation being incapable of interfering with the manual control due to the fact that each control is effective to operatively connect the member and advancing means at such times only when a replenishing operation cannot occur.

13. In a multi-shuttl'e weft replenishing loom having 7 a lay and provided with a rotary reserve bobbin magazine operating in such manner that the period of time required for a bobbin changing operation including rocking the magazine to place the correct bobbin in transfer position and setting the loom for a weft replenishing operation extends substantially from the time the lay is on a bottom center position on one heat of the loom until the lay is between its second front center position thereafter and the top center position nextfollowing, a member having a working stroke occurring between the end of said period and the beginning of a similar period of time beginning when the lay next reaches a bottom center position, advancing means for the magazine normally disconnected from said member but effective when operatively connected to the member to turn the magazine, and control means for the advancing means capable of assuming two positions normally in one position and exerting no control over the advancing means but effective when in the other position thereof to cause the member to actuate the advancing means.

14. The loom set forth in claim 13 wherein the member has periodic working strokes and is capable on a working stroke when operatively connected to the advancing means of remaining so connected should the control means return to said one position thereof.

15. The loom set forth in claim 13 wherein the control means includes a. normally open electric switch and a normally deenergized solenoid effective when energized to cause the member to actuate the advancing means.

16. The loom set forth in claim 15 wherein the member has regularly receiving working strokes and is elfective on a working stroke when operatively connected to said advancing means to remain thus connected eventhough the electric switch should open.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

